Plating apparatus and plating processing method

ABSTRACT

A plating module 400 includes a plating tank 410, a substrate holder 440, an elevating mechanism 480, and a moving mechanism 490. The plating tank 410 is for housing a plating solution. The substrate holder 440 is for holding a substrate Wf with a surface to be plated Wf-a facing the plating solution housed in the plating tank 410. The elevating mechanism 480 is for elevating the substrate holder 440. The moving mechanism 490 is for moving the substrate holder 440 in a direction perpendicular to an elevating direction of the substrate holder 440.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This application relates to a plating apparatus and a plating processingmethod.

BACKGROUND ART

There has been known a cup type electroplating apparatus as one exampleof a plating apparatus. The cup type electroplating apparatus immerses asubstrate (for example, a semiconductor wafer) held by a substrateholder in a plating solution with a surface to be plated facingdownward, and applies a voltage between the substrate and an anode todeposit a conductive film on a surface of the substrate.

In the cup type electroplating apparatus, a plating film thicknessformed on the substrate is desired to be uniformized on the wholesubstrate. In this respect, PTL 1, for example, discloses a method tosuppress a thick plating film from being formed near an outer edgeportion of the substrate by disposing a ring-shaped shielding memberthat can shield an electric field between the anode and the substrateand thereby reducing a current density near the outer edge portion ofthe substrate.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

PTL 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2014-51697

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

However, the plating film thickness of the whole substrate may possiblyfail to be sufficiently uniformized by only disposing the shieldingmember. Therefore, another method for uniformizing the plating filmthickness is required.

In this respect, inventors of the present application have found that apositional relationship between the shaft center of the anode and theshaft center of the substrate of the plating apparatus affects a profileof the plating film thickness. Adjusting the positional relationshipbetween the shaft center of the anode and the shaft center of thesubstrate is important even in, for example, aligning the shaft centerswhen assembling the plating apparatus. Furthermore, when starting a newplating process using a different type of substrate, a plating solution,or the like, certain adjustments, such as aligning the shaft center ofthe anode and the shaft center of the substrate or purposely shiftingthe shaft centers based on a trend of the profile of the plating filmthickness of the substrate in the plating process are required. Toadjust the positional relationship between the shaft center of the anodeand the shaft center of the substrate, it is important to easily performa positional adjustment of a substrate holder that holds the substrate.

Therefore, one object of this application is to easily perform thepositional adjustment of the substrate holder.

Solution to Problem

According to one embodiment, there is disclosed a plating apparatus thatincludes a plating tank, a substrate holder, an elevating mechanism, anda moving mechanism. The plating tank is for housing a plating solution.The substrate holder is for holding a substrate with a surface to beplated facing the plating solution housed in the plating tank. Theelevating mechanism is for elevating the substrate holder. The movingmechanism is for moving the substrate holder in a directionperpendicular to an elevating direction of the substrate holder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an overall configuration of aplating apparatus of this embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating the overall configuration of theplating apparatus of this embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically illustrating aconfiguration of a plating module of this embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically illustrating theconfiguration of the plating module of this embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a plating film thickness profile of asubstrate when adjusting a position in the X direction of a substrateholder.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a plating processing method of thisembodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The following will describe an embodiment of the present invention withreference to the drawings. In the drawings described later, theidentical reference numerals are assigned for the identical orequivalent constituent elements, and therefore such elements will not befurther elaborated here.

<Overall Configuration of Plating Apparatus>

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the overall configuration ofthe plating apparatus of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan viewillustrating the overall configuration of the plating apparatus of thisembodiment. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 , a plating apparatus 1000includes load ports 100, a transfer robot 110, aligners 120, pre-wetmodules 200, pre-soak modules 300, plating modules 400, cleaning modules500, spin rinse dryers 600, a transfer device 700, and a control module800.

The load port 100 is a module for loading a substrate housed in acassette, such as a FOUP, (not illustrated) to the plating apparatus1000 and unloading the substrate from the plating apparatus 1000 to thecassette. While the four load ports 100 are arranged in the horizontaldirection in this embodiment, the number of load ports 100 andarrangement of the load ports 100 are arbitrary. The transfer robot 110is a robot for transferring the substrate that is configured to grip orrelease the substrate between the load port 100, the aligner 120, andthe transfer device 700. The transfer robot 110 and the transfer device700 can perform delivery and receipt of the substrate via a temporaryplacement table (not illustrated) to grip or release the substratebetween the transfer robot 110 and the transfer device 700.

The aligner 120 is a module for adjusting a position of an orientationflat, a notch, and the like of the substrate in a predetermineddirection. While the two aligners 120 are disposed to be arranged in thehorizontal direction in this embodiment, the number of aligners 120 andarrangement of the aligners 120 are arbitrary. The pre-wet module 200wets a surface to be plated of the substrate before a plating processwith a process liquid, such as pure water or deaerated water, to replaceair inside a pattern formed on the surface of the substrate with theprocess liquid. The pre-wet module 200 is configured to perform apre-wet process to facilitate supplying the plating solution to theinside of the pattern by replacing the process liquid inside the patternwith a plating solution during plating. While the two pre-wet modules200 are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in thisembodiment, the number of pre-wet modules 200 and arrangement of thepre-wet modules 200 are arbitrary.

For example, the pre-soak module 300 is configured to remove an oxidizedfilm having a large electrical resistance present on a surface of a seedlayer formed on the surface to be plated of the substrate before theplating process by etching with a process liquid, such as sulfuric acidand hydrochloric acid, and perform a pre-soak process that cleans oractivates a surface of a plating base layer. While the two pre-soakmodules 300 are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction inthis embodiment, the number of pre-soak modules 300 and arrangement ofthe pre-soak modules 300 are arbitrary. The plating module 400 performsthe plating process on the substrate. There are two sets of the 12plating modules 400 arranged by three in the vertical direction and byfour in the horizontal direction, and the total 24 plating modules 400are disposed in this embodiment, but the number of plating modules 400and arrangement of the plating modules 400 are arbitrary.

The cleaning module 500 is configured to perform a cleaning process onthe substrate to remove the plating solution or the like left on thesubstrate after the plating process. While the two cleaning modules 500are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in thisembodiment, the number of cleaning modules 500 and arrangement of thecleaning modules 500 are arbitrary. The spin rinse dryer 600 is a modulefor rotating the substrate after the cleaning process at high speed anddrying the substrate. While the two spin rinse dryers are disposed to bearranged in the vertical direction in this embodiment, the number ofspin rinse dryers and arrangement of the spin rinse dryers arearbitrary. The transfer device 700 is a device for transferring thesubstrate between the plurality of modules inside the plating apparatus1000. The control module 800 is configured to control the plurality ofmodules in the plating apparatus 1000 and can be configured of, forexample, a general computer including input/output interfaces with anoperator or a dedicated computer.

An example of a sequence of the plating processes by the platingapparatus 1000 will be described. First, the substrate housed in thecassette is loaded on the load port 100. Subsequently, the transferrobot 110 grips the substrate from the cassette at the load port 100 andtransfers the substrate to the aligners 120. The aligner 120 adjusts theposition of the orientation flat, the notch, or the like of thesubstrate in the predetermined direction. The transfer robot 110 gripsor releases the substrate whose direction is adjusted with the aligners120 to the transfer device 700.

The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate received from thetransfer robot 110 to the pre-wet module 200. The pre-wet module 200performs the pre-wet process on the substrate. The transfer device 700transfers the substrate on which the pre-wet process has been performedto the pre-soak module 300. The pre-soak module 300 performs thepre-soak process on the substrate. The transfer device 700 transfers thesubstrate on which the pre-soak process has been performed to theplating module 400. The plating module 400 performs the plating processon the substrate.

The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate on which the platingprocess has been performed to the cleaning module 500. The cleaningmodule 500 performs the cleaning process on the substrate. The transferdevice 700 transfers the substrate on which the cleaning process hasbeen performed to the spin rinse dryer 600. The spin rinse dryer 600performs the drying process on the substrate. The transfer device 700grips or releases the substrate on which the drying process has beenperformed to the transfer robot 110. The transfer robot 110 transfersthe substrate received from the transfer device 700 to the cassette atthe load port 100. Finally, the cassette housing the substrate isunloaded from the load port 100.

<Configuration of Plating Module>

Next, the configuration of the plating module 400 will be described.Since the 24 plating modules 400 according to this embodiment have theidentical configuration, only one plating module 400 will be described.FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically illustrating theconfiguration of the plating module of this embodiment. As illustratedin FIG. 3 , the plating module 400 includes a plating tank 410 to housethe plating solution. The plating module 400 includes a membrane 420that separates an inside of the plating tank 410 in the verticaldirection. The inside of the plating tank 410 is partitioned into acathode region 422 and an anode region 424 by the membrane 420. Thecathode region 422 and the anode region 424 are each loaded with theplating solution. An anode 430 is disposed on the bottom surface of theplating tank 410 in the anode region 424. An ionically resistive element450 facing the membrane 420 is disposed in the cathode region 422. Theionically resistive element 450 is a member to uniformize the platingprocess on a surface to be plated Wf-a of a substrate Wf and is made ofa plate-shaped material on which many pores are formed. The platingmodule 400 may contain a paddle (not illustrated) to agitate the platingsolution in an upper portion of the ionically resistive element 450. Theplating module 400 also includes a sensor 455 to measure the platingfilm thickness formed on the surface to be plated Wf-a of the substrateWf by the plating process. While the sensor 455 is disposed in thecenter of the upper surface of the ionically resistive element 450 ofthis embodiment, the arranged position of the sensor 455 is not limitedthereto and in any place.

The plating module 400 includes a substrate holder 440 to hold thesubstrate Wf with the surface to be plated Wf-a facing downward. Thesubstrate holder 440 includes a power feeding contact to feed power tothe substrate Wf from a power source (not illustrated). A shaft 442 issecured to an upper surface of the substrate holder 440. A holdingmember 448 to hold the substrate holder 440 is mounted on the shaft 442.The holding member 448 includes a horizontal holder base 444 to hold thesubstrate holder 440 and a perpendicular holder base 446 to hold thehorizontal holder base 444 via the shaft 442. The perpendicular holderbase 446 is mounted to an elevating linear guide 482 to be movable inthe vertical direction.

The plating module 400 includes a rotation mechanism 460 to rotate thesubstrate holder 440 such that the substrate Wf rotates around a virtualrotation axis that extends perpendicularly through the center of thesurface to be plated Wf-a. The rotation mechanism 460 can be achieved bythe known mechanism, such as a motor. In this embodiment, a pulley 462is mounted to the shaft 442, and a belt 464 is mounted to the pulley462. The rotation mechanism 460 is configured to rotate the substrateholder 440 by rotating the shaft 442 via the belt 464 and the pulley462.

The plating module 400 includes an inclination mechanism 470 to inclinethe substrate holder 440. In this embodiment, the inclination mechanism470 includes a cylinder 472 connected to the perpendicular holder base446 via a rotation shaft, a piston rod 474 connected to the horizontalholder base 444 via a rotation shaft. The inclination mechanism 470 canadjust an angle of the substrate holder 440 by pressing and pulling thepiston rod 474 with the cylinder 472. The inclination mechanism 470 canbe achieved by the known mechanism, such as a tilt mechanism, withoutbeing limited to the above-described configuration.

The plating module 400 includes an elevating mechanism 480 that elevatesthe substrate holder 440 along the Z-axis (vertical direction). In thisembodiment, the elevating mechanism 480 includes the elevating linearguide 482 that extends in an elevating direction and an elevatingdriving member 484 that moves the perpendicular holder base 446 in thevertical direction along the elevating linear guide 482. The elevatingdriving member 484 can be achieved by the known mechanism, such as amotor. The elevating mechanism 480 is configured to elevate thesubstrate holder 440 by moving the perpendicular holder base 446 in thevertical direction along the elevating linear guide 482. The platingmodule 400 is configured to perform a plating process on the surface tobe plated Wf-a of the substrate Wf by immersing the substrate Wf in theplating solution of the cathode region 422 using the elevating mechanism480 and applying a voltage between the anode 430 and the substrate Wf

The plating module 400 includes a moving mechanism 490 to move thesubstrate holder 440 in a direction perpendicular to the elevatingdirection of the substrate holder 440. The following describes themoving mechanism 490. FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematicallyillustrating a configuration of the plating module of this embodiment.In FIG. 4 , the rotation mechanism 460, the inclination mechanism 470,the elevating mechanism 480, and the like are omitted for clarificationof illustration.

As illustrated in FIG. 4 , the moving mechanism 490 includes a firstmoving mechanism 490-1 to move the substrate holder 440 in a firstdirection (Y-axis direction) perpendicular to the elevating direction(Z-axis direction), and a second moving mechanism 490-2 to move thesubstrate holder 440 in a second direction (X-axis direction)perpendicular to the elevating direction and the first direction.

The first moving mechanism 490-1 includes a first linear guide 492 thatextends in the first direction, a first support table 493 disposed onthe first linear guide 492, and a first driving member 491 to move thefirst support table 493 along the first linear guide 492. The secondmoving mechanism 490-2 includes a second linear guide 496 that extendsin the second direction, a second support table 497 disposed on thesecond linear guide 496, and a second driving member 495 to move thesecond support table 497 along the second linear guide 496. The firstmoving mechanism 490-1 and the second moving mechanism 490-2 can beachieved by the known mechanism, such as a linear motion guide.

The first moving mechanism 490-1 and the second moving mechanism 490-2are disposed to be stacked on a base 494. In this embodiment, the firstmoving mechanism 490-1 is disposed on the base 494 and the second movingmechanism 490-2 is disposed on the first moving mechanism 490-1. Theelevating linear guide 482 is secured onto the second support table 497.The positions of the first moving mechanism 490-1 and the second movingmechanism 490-2 may be interchanged. Only one of the first movingmechanism 490-1 and the second moving mechanism 490-2 may be disposed.The rotation mechanism 460, the inclination mechanism 470, the elevatingmechanism 480, and the moving mechanism 490 may be controlled via thecontrol module 800.

Since the plating module 400 of this embodiment includes the movingmechanism 490, the substrate holder 440 can be easily moved in adirection perpendicular (X-axis direction and Y-axis direction) to theelevating direction (Z-axis direction) of the substrate holder 440.Accordingly, the plating module 400 can easily perform the positionaladjustment of the substrate holder 440. For example, since the platingmodule 400 is a large-sized device and has many components, due to atolerance of each component and an assembling tolerance, it is difficultto align the shaft center of the substrate holder 440 (substrate Wf heldby the substrate holder 440) and the shaft center of the anode 430 wheninstalling the plating module 400. In this respect, according to theplating module 400 of this embodiment, the moving mechanism 490 can movethe substrate holder 440 such that the shaft center of the anode 430 andthe shaft center of the substrate Wf held by the substrate holder 440are aligned. For example, the substrate holder 440 can be moved in theX-axis direction and the Y-axis direction via an input interfaceincluded in the control module 800. Therefore, the plating module 400 ofthis embodiment can easily align the shaft centers to keep theuniformity of the plating film thickness of the whole substrate.

Especially, like the plating apparatus 1000 of this embodiment, when aplurality (24 units) of the plating modules 400 are included, aconsiderable labor is taken to align the shaft centers of the substrateholder 440 and the anode 430 of each plating module 400. In thisrespect, if the moving mechanism 490 is included like in thisembodiment, the shaft centers can be easily aligned in a plurality ofthe plating modules 400.

The moving mechanism 490 of the plating module 400 of this embodimentcan be configured to move the substrate holder 440 based on the platingfilm thickness measured by the sensor 455. That is, with an object toimprove the uniformity of the plating film thickness of the substrateWf, in order to, for example, finely adjust the film thickness of theouter edge portion of the substrate Wf, it has been known to adjust adistance (distance in the Z direction) between the anode 430 and thesubstrate Wf. However, when the distance between the anode 430 and thesubstrate Wf is increased, a distance between the substrate and thepaddle is also increased and it is concerned that the agitatingefficiency of the plating solution near the surface to be plated Wf-adeclines. In contrast, the inventors of this application have found thatthe positional relationship between the shaft center of the anode 430and the shaft center of the substrate Wf affects the profile of theplating film thickness.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the plating film thickness profile ofthe substrate when adjusting the position in the X direction of thesubstrate holder. In FIG. 5 , the horizontal axis is a radius (mm) ofthe substrate Wf and the vertical axis is the plating film thickness(arbitrary unit). FIG. 5 indicates the profile of the plating filmthickness when aligning the shaft center of the substrate Wf and theshaft center of the anode 430 (X=0), and when shifting the shaft centerof the substrate Wf in the X direction with respect to the shaft centerof the anode 430 (X=0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 1.0).

As illustrated in FIG. 5 , w % ben the shaft center of the substrate Wfis purposely shifted in the X direction with respect to the shaft centerof the anode 430, the film thickness of the substrate Wf changesespecially in the outer edge portion. In this embodiment, when theplating process was performed with the shaft center of the substrate Wfshifted 0.6 mm with respect to the shaft center of the anode 430, theuniformity of the plating film thickness of the substrate Wf improved.According to this embodiment, since the position of the shaft center ofthe substrate holder 440 can be adjusted with respect to the shaftcenter of the anode 430, the uniformity of the plating film thicknesscan be improved without increasing the distance between the substrate Wfand the paddle, that is, without the agitating efficiency of the platingsolution declining.

Even with an initial setting of the uniformity of the plating filmthickness for improvement, due to changes over time of the platingmodule 400, changes in the plating process, or the like, it is difficultto continuously keep the uniformity of the plating film thickness. Inthis case, a readjustment operation of the plating module 400 by amaintenance work is necessary. In this respect, according to thisembodiment, the shaft center on the side of the substrate holder 440(substrate Wf) can be adjusted via the control module 800, andtherefore, the positions of the substrate holders 440 of the pluralityof plating modules 400 can be managed by parameters, and the positionsof the substrate holders 440 can be adjusted instantly.

Next, the plating processing method in this embodiment will bedescribed. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the plating processingmethod of this embodiment. The flowchart of FIG. 6 illustrates, as oneexample, a process of installing the plating module 400.

As illustrated in FIG. 6 , the plating processing method moves thesubstrate holder 440 in a direction perpendicular to the elevatingdirection of the substrate holder 440 using the moving mechanism 490 (afirst moving step 110). Specifically, the first moving step 110 movesthe substrate holder 440 such that the shaft center of the anode 430disposed inside the plating tank 410 and the shaft center of thesubstrate Wf held by the substrate holder 440 are aligned. The firstmoving step 110 includes the first moving step of moving the substrateholder 440 in the first direction (X-axis direction) perpendicular tothe elevating direction (Z-axis direction), and the second moving stepof moving the substrate holder 440 in the second direction (Y-axisdirection) perpendicular to the elevating direction and the firstdirection. The first moving step 110 can be performed by, for example,an operator inputting a movement amount in the X-axis direction and theY-axis direction of the substrate holder 440 via the input interface ofthe control module 800. The alignment of the shaft centers of thesubstrate Wf and the anode 430 is completed by the first moving step110.

Subsequently, the plating processing method installs the substrate Wf onthe substrate holder 440 (a step 120). Then, the plating processingmethod lowers the substrate holder 440 into the plating tank 410 usingthe elevating mechanism 480 (a lowering step 130). Then, the platingprocessing method rotates the substrate holder 440 using the rotationmechanism 460 while performing the plating process on the substrate Wfheld by the substrate holder 440 lowered into the plating tank 410 (aplating step 140).

Subsequently, the plating processing method measures the plating filmthickness formed on the surface to be plated Wf-a of the substrate Wf bythe plating step 140 (a measuring step 150). The measuring step 150measures the plating film thickness using the sensor 455.

Subsequently, the plating processing method moves the substrate holder440 using the moving mechanism 490 based on the plating film thicknessmeasured by the measuring step 150 (a second moving step 160). Thesecond moving step 160 can, for example, move the substrate holder 440to a position with the highest uniformity of the plating film thicknessby shifting the shaft center of the substrate Wf in the X-directionand/or the Y-direction with respect to the shaft center of the anode430.

Subsequently, the plating processing method determines whether theplating process should be terminated or not (a determining step 170).The determining step 170 can determine whether the plating processshould be terminated or not based on, for example, if a predeterminedtime has elapsed since the plating process started, or if apredetermined plating film thickness has been formed. If the platingprocessing method determines that the plating process should not beterminated (the determining step 170, No), it returns to the platingstep 140 and repeats the process. On the other hand, if the platingprocessing method determines that the plating process should beterminated (the determining step 170, Yes), it terminates the process.

Since the flowchart of FIG. 6 illustrates the process of installing theplating module 400, the alignment of the shaft centers of the substrateWf and the anode 430 (the first moving step 110) is performed first, butthe first moving step 110 may be omitted. Furthermore, the flowchart ofFIG. 6 illustrates an example of moving the substrate holder 440 whileexecuting the plating process (the second moving step 160), but it isnot limited thereto. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 5 , the platingmodule 400 can perform the plating process on a plurality of substratesby shifting the shaft center of the substrate Wf different amounts withrespect to the shaft center of the anode 430. As a result, the platingmodule 400 can obtain a plurality of the plating film thickness profilesand by comparing these, the optimum movement amount can be obtained. Inthis case, the plating module 400 can move the substrate holder 440based on the optimum movement amount before the plating process forsubstrates on which the same plating process is performed.

In the foregoing, several embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed above in order to facilitate understanding of the presentinvention without limiting the present invention. The present inventioncan be changed or improved without departing from the gist thereof, andof course, the equivalents of the present invention are included in thepresent invention. It is possible to arbitrarily combine or omitrespective constituent elements described in the claims and thespecification in a range in which at least a part of the above-describedproblems can be solved, or a range in which at least a part of theeffects can be exhibited.

As one embodiment, this application discloses a plating apparatus thatincludes a plating tank, a substrate holder, an elevating mechanism, anda moving mechanism. The plating tank is for housing a plating solution.The substrate holder is for holding a substrate with a surface to beplated facing the plating solution housed in the plating tank. Theelevating mechanism is for elevating the substrate holder. The movingmechanism is for moving the substrate holder in a directionperpendicular to an elevating direction of the substrate holder.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingapparatus in which the moving mechanism includes: a first movingmechanism for moving the substrate holder in a first directionperpendicular to the elevating direction, and a second moving mechanismfor moving the substrate holder in a second direction perpendicular tothe elevating direction and the first direction.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingapparatus in which the first moving mechanism includes a first linearguide extending in the first direction, a first support table disposedon the first linear guide, and a first driving member for moving thefirst support table along the first linear guide, the second movingmechanism includes a second linear guide extending in the seconddirection, a second support table disposed on the second linear guide,and a second driving member for moving the second support table alongthe second linear guide, the first moving mechanism and the secondmoving mechanism are disposed to be stacked on a base, and the elevatingmechanism includes an elevating linear guide and an elevating drivingmember, the elevating linear guide being mounted to the first supporttable or the second support table, and extending in the elevatingdirection, the elevating driving member being for moving a holdingmember holding the substrate holder along the elevating linear guide.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingapparatus in which the moving mechanism moves the substrate holder suchthat a shaft center of an anode disposed inside the plating tank and ashaft center of the substrate held by the substrate holder are aligned.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingapparatus that further includes a sensor for measuring a plating filmthickness formed on the surface to be plated of the substrate by theplating process, and the moving mechanism is configured to move thesubstrate holder based on the plating film thickness measured by thesensor.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingapparatus that includes a plurality of plating modules each includingthe plating tank, the substrate holder, the elevating mechanism, and themoving mechanism.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingprocessing method that includes: a moving step of moving a substrateholder for holding a substrate with a surface to be plated facing aplating solution housed in a plating tank in a direction perpendicularto an elevating direction of the substrate holder; a lowering step oflowering the substrate holder into the plating tank; and a plating stepof performing a plating process on the substrate held by the substrateholder lowered into the plating tank.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingprocessing method in which the moving step includes: a first moving stepof moving the substrate holder in a first direction perpendicular to theelevating direction; and a second moving step of moving the substrateholder in a second direction perpendicular to the elevating directionand the first direction.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingprocessing method in which the moving step includes a first moving stepof moving the substrate holder such that a shaft center of an anodedisposed inside the plating tank and a shaft center of the substrateheld by the substrate holder are aligned.

Furthermore, as one embodiment, this application discloses a platingprocessing method in which the plating processing method furtherincludes a measuring step of measuring a plating film thickness formedon the surface to be plated of the substrate by the plating step, andthe moving step includes a second moving step of moving the substrateholder based on the plating film thickness measured by the measuringstep.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   -   400 . . . plating module    -   410 . . . plating tank    -   430 . . . anode    -   440 . . . substrate holder    -   444 . . . horizontal holder base    -   446 . . . perpendicular holder base    -   448 . . . holding member    -   455 . . . sensor    -   460 . . . rotation mechanism    -   470 . . . inclination mechanism    -   480 . . . elevating mechanism    -   482 . . . elevating linear guide    -   484 . . . elevating driving member    -   490 . . . moving mechanism    -   490-1 . . . first moving mechanism    -   490-2 . . . second moving mechanism    -   491 . . . first driving member    -   492 . . . first linear guide    -   493 . . . first support table    -   494 . . . base    -   495 . . . second driving member    -   496 . . . second linear guide    -   497 . . . second support table    -   800 . . . control module    -   1000 . . . plating apparatus    -   Wf . . . substrate    -   Wf-a . . . surface to be plated

1. A plating apparatus comprising: a plating tank for housing a platingsolution; a substrate holder for holding a substrate with a surface tobe plated facing the plating solution housed in the plating tank; anelevating mechanism for elevating the substrate holder; and a movingmechanism for moving the substrate holder in a direction perpendicularto an elevating direction of the substrate holder.
 2. The platingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving mechanism includes: afirst moving mechanism for moving the substrate holder in a firstdirection perpendicular to the elevating direction; and a second movingmechanism for moving the substrate holder in a second directionperpendicular to the elevating direction and the first direction.
 3. Theplating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first movingmechanism includes a first linear guide extending in the firstdirection, a first support table disposed on the first linear guide, anda first driving member for moving the first support table along thefirst linear guide, the second moving mechanism includes a second linearguide extending in the second direction, a second support table disposedon the second linear guide, and a second driving member for moving thesecond support table along the second linear guide, the first movingmechanism and the second moving mechanism are disposed to be stacked ona base, and the elevating mechanism includes an elevating linear guideand an elevating driving member, the elevating linear guide beingmounted to the first support table or the second support table, andextending in the elevating direction, the elevating driving member beingfor moving a holding member holding the substrate holder along theelevating linear guide.
 4. The plating apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the moving mechanism moves the substrate holder such that ashaft center of an anode disposed inside the plating tank and a shaftcenter of the substrate held by the substrate holder are aligned.
 5. Theplating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plating apparatusfurther comprises a sensor for measuring a plating film thickness formedon the surface to be plated of the substrate by the plating process, andthe moving mechanism is configured to move the substrate holder based onthe plating film thickness measured by the sensor.
 6. The platingapparatus according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of platingmodules each including the plating tank, the substrate holder, theelevating mechanism, and the moving mechanism.
 7. A plating processingmethod comprising: a moving step of moving a substrate holder forholding a substrate with a surface to be plated facing a platingsolution housed in a plating tank in a direction perpendicular to anelevating direction of the substrate holder; a lowering step of loweringthe substrate holder into the plating tank; and a plating step ofperforming a plating process on the substrate held by the substrateholder lowered into the plating tank.
 8. The plating processing methodaccording to claim 7, wherein the moving step includes: a first movingstep of moving the substrate holder in a first direction perpendicularto the elevating direction; and a second moving step of moving thesubstrate holder in a second direction perpendicular to the elevatingdirection and the first direction.
 9. The plating processing methodaccording to claim 7, wherein the moving step includes a first movingstep of moving the substrate holder such that a shaft center of an anodedisposed inside the plating tank and a shaft center of the substrateheld by the substrate holder are aligned.
 10. The plating processingmethod according to claim 7, wherein the plating processing methodfurther comprises a measuring step of measuring a plating film thicknessformed on the surface to be plated of the substrate by the plating step,and the moving step includes a second moving step of moving thesubstrate holder based on the plating film thickness measured by themeasuring step.